What is 10 multiplied by -5?

• A. -50
• B. 50
• C. -25
• D. -100

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is how signs work in multiplication. A positive number times a negative number gives a negative result, and the size of the product is the product of their absolute values. So take the absolute values: 10 and 5 multiply to 50, and because one factor is negative, the product gets a negative sign. The result is -50.

If you see the other options: 50 would require both numbers to be positive, which isn’t the case here. -25 would come from multiplying 5 by -5 (or similar), not from 10 by -5. -100 would come from multiplying 10 by -10 or 20 by -5, which isn’t the situation given.